The Street Life
by Irish Fury
Summary: Cahill O'Hara was the typical little rich girl until she ran away and started datinga drug dealer and gang leader, until she became Dagger. Then nothing was typical, even being sent to Horizen didn't get her away from being Dagger.
1. Chapter One

A.N. Okay this is my first try at a Higher Ground story and I'm also in the middle of writing three other stories so I'll probably update this every other week. PLEASE REVIEW!!!! Kat  
  
Walking down the street was a girl of 5'11 with bright red curly hair, and dark blue eyes, if this wasn't an odd enough combination she also had a scar running through her eyebrow and another running through her top lip. She was dressed in a red leather mini-skirt and a black a red girdle like top. Her make-up was done extravagantly, with red, glittery eye shadow and lots of black eyeliner and deep red lipstick. She was also wearing black, leather knee high boots, to any cop and new kid to the street she looked like a prostitute, but to those who had been on the street longer, knew her for what she was. Her ex-boyfriend had been in the Dragons which was one of the local gangs and he'd also been one of the major drug dealers. Now he was in jail and she'd taken his place, with being a drug dealer, which was why she was dressed like a prostitute, because you got less time for that, and if she was picked up, it would be easier to talk her way out of that.  
  
She was about five blocks from her house, when she bumped into another girl wearing even skimpier clothes then she was and the girl looked doped up. The red head could see the gleam in her eyes and knew she was about to attack, so she quickly moved her hand to her boot and grasped the handle of the dagger that was in there and raised it to her neck. The girl seemed to come down from her high immediately and fear radiated from her eyes, "Dagger.I didn't recognize you."  
  
The girl laughed coldly, "Don't try that with me Casey, you shouldn't dope up enough to not recognize me, because next time it will cost you a lot, maybe that pretty face of yours."  
  
With that she pushed the girl aside and tucked the dagger back in her boot and continued on her way, only to be ambushed a block down. Before she could reach for her weapon she was pushed against a car and a gun was put to her head, "Don't even try it Dagger, I know all of your tricks, and we're through playing around with you."  
  
Dagger recognized the voice, it belonged to Tommy the leader of the Colts, one of many of the Dragons enemies and someone who Dagger had turned down numerous times when he wanted to date her. She felt his hand slide down her leg and grip the handle to the knife and slide it out of her boot, but she refused to acknowledge it in anyway because she wouldn't give him the satisfaction of knowing how disgusted she was by him. Being on and off the streets for the past five years had taught her a lot and like most street kids she knew the rules, number one being showing no emotion because emotion was weakness. She kept her face and eyes blank when he spun her around, and she knew it infuriated him, that she wasn't showing fear. He threw her dagger to someone who was just stepping out of the shadows, and they nimbly caught it and laughed cruelly, she jerked her gaze towards the person and smirked.  
  
The girl came forward, "Guess I can play stupid better then I thought, now how bout I slice up that pretty face of yours."  
  
Still Dagger showed no emotion, 'So Casey wants to play, huh?' She just smiled and let Casey trace the blade down her cheek, Dagger didn't care about her face, but she never let another person especially someone like Casey get the best of her. Casey raised the knife and sliced down Dagger's cheek, but Dagger didn't even flinch, and as Casey pulled her arm back, Dagger raised hers like lighting and grabbed Casey's wrist easily breaking it before Tommy could get a grasp on it again. Casey screamed in pain and dropped the dagger, which Dagger moved with her foot so that it fell into the gutter. Looking at the street sign she marked it to come back for later, then she fixed her gaze on Tommy who was staring at her with what looked to be admiration. Then he raised his fist and punched her in the face, Dagger blacked out almost immediately, but she knew the beating was just beginning.  
  
When Dagger awoke later she looked around and noticed that she was in a hospital, she sighed. "Damn meddling people, can't mind their own damn business. It wasn't that she didn't appreciate having the help, because she knew from experience that waking up in an alley was no fun but she just didn't have the time to try and sweet talk her way out of this. She was late for an appointment with her supplier and now he would think that she was turning and she couldn't risk that. She tried to sit up but groaned and leaned back against the pillows, and rolled her head to the side. There was a mirror on the door and she almost screamed when she saw her reflection, almost. As she got control of her emotions, she cursed Tommy Bendito and Casey, his whore. She looked at her arms and saw that they were riddled with cuts and bruises, carefully she lifted up the blanked and then her shirt and saw her stomach was the same. Just as she lowered the blanket a nurse came bustling in and smiled, seeing that Dagger was awake.  
  
"I'm glad you finally woke up, now you can give us some of your basic information. You didn't have any I.D. on you so we had no idea who to call." Dagger thought about lying, but then decided that it just wasn't worth it at the moment, because she was going to contact her brother soon anyway might as well be now.  
  
She smiled and laid further back, "Cahill O'Hara."  
  
The nurse frowned, "O'Hara, where have I heard that name before? Have you been in here before."  
  
"Probably, but you probably know my step-father, he's a doctor here, maybe he told you about his evil step-daughter Cahill. His name's Ray Harrison."  
  
She pursed her lips together in distress, "Ah yes, well I'll be back in just a moment." As she walked away, Cahill sighed, knowing she was in for another yelling session with the evil devil monster, in other words Ray. He came in a few moments later and scowled at her, the moved closer and picked up her chart.  
  
"Severely beaten, slight concussion, cuts all over body, apparently made with a switchblade with the exception of the one on cheek, deeper therefore made with a blunter object." He slammed the chart down on the table, but Cahill who had expected it didn't flinch in the latest, just stared at her step-father, coldly. "What do you have to say for yourself? This is the fifth time you've run away and this time you were gone for almost a year and a half with no word for your mother at all. Do you know what you've done to this family? You've torn it apart, your mother worried herself half to death over you."  
  
Cahill gasped, theatrically and put a hand over her chest, "Oh my, did she stay out of work for a day? It must have been just dreadful for all of you!"  
  
If possible Ray's scowl deepened, "I won't stand for this any longer! Since we can't seem to keep you in check, we've already decided that if you ever came home or were arrested again we were sending you away, to somewhere you can't cause as much trouble as you do here."  
  
Cahill just smirked, "How long do you think they'll be able to hold me, I'll be back in Detroit by the end of the week?"  
  
Ray smiled coldly, "Not when the place is in Canada. Not when it's in the middle of nowhere."  
  
She felt a flicker of fear but refused to let it show and scoffed at him, "Sure, just try to send me there. You won't like the results of that!"  
  
With that she turned her back and he walked out of the room, 'He can't send me anywhere if I don't want to go. I'll find a way out of this.' 


	2. Chapter Two

Three days later, Cahill was being wheeled out of the hospital and was brought to a limo that was parked out front. She grasped the arm rests and raised herself carefully not wanting to hurt herself more than she already was. She stood and walked slowly to the door that was being held open by the driver, she then climbed in and the door was shut behind her. Today she was dressed much more modestly, wearing a pair of jeans with a red baby- tee and a black hoodie sweatshirt over top. Her hair was pulled up in a ponytail and her face was free of all make-up. Even in sneakers she still towered above many of the people around her, naturally being 5'11. She was suspicious when she saw the limo and her thoughts were confirmed when she noticed that the driver was heading for the edge of town. They weren't letting her go home, they were sending her straight to this boarding school, 'Well damn there's goes plan A, well there's always plan B.'  
  
She leaned back and relaxed, knowing it was going to be a long trip and it was, somewhere along the way she dozed off and was awoken as the limo came to a stop. She quickly opened the door and stepped out, before the driver had a chance to open the door for her. As she stepped out of the car she noticed that they had stopped for gas, she looked at the driver and saw he wasn't paying any attention to her so she went into the store and walked over to where the clerk was restocking some shelves. She tapped him on the shoulder and as he turned around she gave him a sweet smile, "Hi there, where's your payphone?"  
  
He smiled and pointed to a hallway that was near the back of the store; she thanked him and made her way over to the phone. She pulled out her calling card and punched in all the information before dialing the number that she knew by heart. After four rings the answering machine picked up and she cursed quietly, while listening to the message, "Hey you've reached Hunter, leave me one."  
  
"Hunter it's me, I just thought I'd let you know that the rents are sending me to some fruity psycho school out in the middle of Canada." She was about to go into details over the incident when she heard the door open and noticed that the driver had come in, "Look I gotta go but I'll call you when I get a chance." Quickly she hung up the phone and then grabbed a coke and a Twix bar and paid for them while the driver paid for the gas. On the way out Cahill studied him, he must have been a new one because she didn't recall ever meeting him before. Then she thought darkly that they must have trained him well since he hadn't said one word to her on the way up or bothered to even look at her for the most part. She didn't know what bothered her more but either way the guy was really starting to creep her out and that wasn't very easy to do considering where she was from.  
  
She didn't bother waiting for him to open the door just climbed back in and then grunted because she'd ended up hurting herself by moving to quickly. She laid back and rested her head against the window, and then opened her coke and took a long swallow. 'Damn this is going to be a long ride, but there is no way they're keeping me there.' She finished eating and then contented herself with looking out the window and studying the landscape as they went by. When they pulled up she jumped out of the car and took a good look at her surroundings, that's when she realized that she was in the middle of Camp Timbuktu, in other words, the middle of nowhere. She glared at the trees and then the driver when he stepped up next to her, waiting for the guy who was walking towards her. It wasn't having any effect though because he was just ignoring her, as the guy got closer, Cahill let her Dagger mask fall into place. She looked him up and down and then went on to looking bored with everything around her, if there was one thing Cahill could do right it was make the people around her feel uncomfortable. She thought about what would be the best approach would be and then laughed, realizing it. Most kids probably come here all pissed off, which she was but she never let her true emotions show so she would just do the opposite and be sickeningly sweet.  
  
As the man stopped in front of her she smiled brightly and held out her hand, "Why 'ello, you must be the owner of this fine establishment. My name's Cahill O'Hara, want to know a secret?" The man looked taken aback and mentally patted herself on the back, it was then that he decided to indulge her and nodded, so she leaned closer. "I think I'm going to be your patient for awhile." She had even used her English accent, which was actually natural seeing as how she grew up there before her father died and her mother moved to the states, but by now it was usually something she chose to repress and not use. Now, though, it might come in handy for her.  
  
He nodded and took her head, "Yeah I guess you are, I'm Peter Scarbrow. You can call me Peter, all the students here do," He looked at the driver, mildly confused, but the driver said nothing just handed him an envelope and then moved towards the trunk to take out Cahill's bags. She followed him, curious as to what her parents packed, she was relieved to see a box, which probably held all of her photos and then she saw it. They'd packed her stick, they must be trying to get rid of her for good, she though cynically but then smiled and shrugged to herself and thought of all the things she tried to do to make them do that. Of course, none of it had worked; she wondered what had finally pushed her mother to get rid of her.  
  
As she turned back to Peter, she noticed his raised eyebrow and the peculiar look on his face, "Guess ol' mum and da just couldn't make it huh? Bet they probably don't want anything to do with me, right. Ah well it's all for the best."  
  
Peter tucked the letter away and smiled warmly at Cahill, she saw the friendliness in his eyes, but knew he was only doing his job. "Okay I'll go over the basic rules with you on the way to your physical and then your counselor will check your bags."  
  
"That's all fine and dandy, but I didn't pack my bag, ducks, mum did. But I don't mind you checking them; you're just doing your job right?"  
  
"Right."  
  
"Well then we better get a move on," She turned towards the driver and walked over and took the majority of her stuff from him, Peter took the rest and within a minute he was back in his car and on his way back to Detroit. Cahill followed Peter towards the offices and put her stuff in one of the empty room and then followed him to the nurses' room. He left her alone with the nurse and the lady told her to change into a gown, so that her clothes could be searched, she did as she was told and the nurse searched her clothes quickly and efficiently before telling Cahill to step on the scale. Again she followed orders without a hassle and she was weighed out to be 125 pounds which for someone 5'11 was incredibly skinny. Cahill stepped off the scale and the nurse did all of the other preliminaries and asked her all of the basic questions. Then it was time for her to take her drug test, Cahill smiled knowing that nothing would show up because she hadn't done drugs since Rocky had gotten taken away.  
  
As she dressed the nurse gave her report to Peter and Cahill stepped out of the office only to be confronted with both Peter and another woman who she didn't recognize but figured to be her counselor. She smiled and held her hand out for the woman to shake which she did immediately and then the pretty blonde smiled at her, "Hi, I'm Sophie, you must be Cahill. I'm your counselor, now I'm assuming Peter filled you in on the fact that I have to search your things."  
  
Cahill smiled, "As a matter of fact, he did, so why don't we just get this over with." Then without waiting for either to respond she headed towards the room where her stuff had been left and once there hopped up on the table there. Sophie and Peter followed her in and Peter gave her a stern look, so she laughed and climbed down from the table.  
  
"While Sophie checks your things, I'll tell you the basic rules. No drugs, no cursing and no inappropriate touching of any kind and that about covers all of the basics. Oh and you'll be rotated into kitchen duty, but the Cliffhangers had that last week so you won't have it for a couple of weeks. I'm assuming you understand all of this."  
  
Cahill smiled tightly, "Perfectly." Sophie had finished checking her stuff so they all took a bag and Cahill carried her box and they headed up to the girls bunk area, once there Peter handed Sophie her bag.  
  
"This is where I leave you. Group is tonight Cahill and I'll meet with you one on one on Thursday." Cahill nodded and he headed off, probably back towards his office. Sophie smiled warmly and led the way up the stairs and into the cabin, she put Cahill's stuff down on the only free bunk and turned around.  
  
"You'll meet the group later, but right now you could settle in and unpack."  
  
"Sure, I'll see you later Sophie." Sophie left Cahill alone to do her unpacking and she put all of her clothes away, glad her mother hadn't packed any of the horrid clothes that she had picked out. She shoved the bags under her bunk and opened the box up. She sat down on the bed and pulled out the hockey stick that had been in there and placed it behind the bed against the wall. It was one of the few things she had that had once belonged to her father and she cherished it more then anything else.  
  
Then she leaned in and pulled out several framed photos and put them on the dresser next to the bed, one was of her dad and her in the middle of a pond. He was spinning her around and they were both laughing, one of the happiest moments in her life. Then another was of Hunter, her best friend, and the guy she always referred to as her brother, even though he wasn't. The only thing that was semi brother-like was her step-brother and she refused to call him by anything but his name which was Ray. She put that one up next and then the last was of her and Rocky; she smiled in memory of when the picture had been taken. It'd been at one of the points when she'd been living with her mother and going to school, it was the one moment that she'd acted like a real teen and gone to a school dance. She was wearing a deep blue long dress and her hair was tied up and she had dark blue flowers wrapped in it. Rocky was wearing a suit, the only time in his life he'd worn one and they were both glowing, it'd been one their happiest times together.  
  
Next in the box was her many notebooks which were filled with her words, stories, poems or songs. She was suddenly sad she had broken her guitar, 'Maybe I'll by myself on later.' With that thought in mind she put all of them in her drawer and pulled out the last few things in the box and then shoved it under her bed. It was the letters Rocky had sent her while he was in jail; they'd continued on for months and then stopped abruptly. She never figured out why, but she just figured he'd stopped caring about her. Smiling she put them in her drawer with her notebooks and pulled out her headphones and slipped in one of her CD's which was Good Charlotte. She laid back on the bed and listened to the entire thing through, it was then that she realized she was late for group. She pulled the headphones off and walked towards the main building. As she walked in she searched for Sophie and spotted her in the back of the main room, by the fireplace. Walking over there one of the guys turned his head towards her and she stopped dead and uttered one word, "Rock?" With that she turned on her heel and ran out of there as fast as her feet would carry her, she ran until she was about thirty feet from the building and then ran right into Peter.  
  
Looking up at his face, she saw the worry and quickly regained her composure, but knew he wasn't convinced and she cursed herself for letting that kid get to her. It couldn't be Rocky, he was doing hard time, he still had three years left, and it just couldn't be him. She then realized Peter had been talking to her, ".running out of there so quickly?"  
  
"Uh I decided to go for a jog and since you weren't at group I figured I was early." She smiled and she could tell that he was debating over it, but then just decided to let it go and turned her back around.  
  
"Well I'm going now, so I'll walk you. Now we're both late." He laughed and she joined, not really seeing what was funny but deciding to go along with him.  
  
"Okay then, let's go." They walked back towards the group together and she refused to look in the direction where'd she seen the boy, it was just too weird. Instead she looked the teens over who were sitting across from him. As the got to the group, the kids stopped looking and took in the newbie.  
  
Peter smiled at them all, "Group this is Cahill O'Hara, Cahill that's David, Auggie, Jules, Daisy, Ezra, Shelby, and Scott." Most of them waved some said hi and the over excited Jules waved and welcomed her with a big smile. Cahill felt a little pity towards her, because it didn't seem like she had many friends here and then she felt the protectiveness swelling up in her. She fought it but knew it was useless; Jules was someone she'd look out for while she was here, when her eyes landed on Scott, she didn't let her reaction visibly show. But her heartbeat quickened and she got butterflies in her stomach.  
  
It was always the reaction she got when she saw Rocky but she quickly shifted her gaze from his face and let it fall on the girl next to him, Barbie Jr. She looked vaguely familiar and Cahill wondered if she'd ever been on the streets, as she took in the definite attitude that shined in her eyes, the answer pointed towards yes. Cahill wondered if Barbie recognized her, then she quickly turned and took on of the empty seats that was next to Jules. Jules seemed to beam with happiness at the prospect of a new friend and Cahill decided it wouldn't be too bad for her if she got a new friend too.  
  
Group went by relatively fast and Cahill participated, but didn't really share what she was thinking, as it ended most of them stayed in the lodge to relax, but Cahill stood and headed out the front door and sat on the stairs, staring at the sky. She sighed, all during group she could barely keep her eyes off the Scott kid and she realized he did look a lot like Rocky but didn't have the same build. She knew it couldn't be Rocky though because he'd told her his real name and it definitely wasn't Scott. So she'd just have to deal and stop seeing her ex in every guy she saw, of course, they could pass as brothers but that was it. 'God Cahill get a grip, you don't date anymore, remember? Besides he's Barbie's Ken.' 


	3. Chapter Three

A.N. Okay I had to change the step brothers' name because I'm adding a new character in with the same name. It's not one I created though, so he doesn't belong to me, in case you're wondering the brothers' new name is Ray. Alright Cole Taylor does not belong to me, he belongs to someone who e-mailed me and asked to be in the story, so here goes. Oh thanks to everyone who reviewed I really appreciate it, I think I should also clear some things up about this story. I don't know if Cahill will be with Scott, I just didn't make it an S/S fic because as much as I like them together I really like Scott so I'm making him single. Also my character is Irish because her dad was Irish but she grew up in England because her mom was English, which is why she has the accent if you didn't get that. Me myself, I'm Irish but I live in Easton, PA. If you have any other questions just either put them in the review or e-mail me and I'll be happy to answer them. (  
  
That night Cahill was lying in bed thinking back on what had been going on in her life for the past few years, she thought about the first time she ran away and when she met Rocky and also when he was arrested. She could still remember that night so clearly in her head, they'd been walking home and they were talking about where they wanted to go with their life. It was a side of Rocky that he barely ever let show but it was the side Cahill loved most. Just as they were rounding one of the corner to their street three cops came out of the shadows and ambushed the two of them. Cahill was thrown against the wall and Rocky was pushed to the ground, his hands were drawn behind his back as one of the guys read him his rights.  
  
Cahill had turned around and looked down at his face and saw blood trickling down his cheek from his forehead, when she'd seen the blood she'd lost her sanity for a minute and had jumped on the back of one of the guys. He twirled in a circle and slammed into the wall so that she crumpled to the ground, as she looked back on it now she realized that there had never been a time in her life when she'd felt more helpless. She looked at Rocky and he winked before mouthing for her to run, but she didn't, she refused to run away from helping him. As she tried to stand another one of the guys pulled her hands behind her back and slapped a pair of cuffs on her as well. Both her and Rocky were brought down to one of the local stations and thrown in separate cells, the next day Cahill was let out but Rocky had to stay until a court day could be set.  
  
Cahill had walked home hugging her arms around herself and feeling more lonely then she had in years, that was when she decided to go visit Hunter. As she walked up to the front door, she ran g the bell and was surprised when a pretty blonde answered. She took in Cahill's appearance and called for Hunter, as Hunter came down the stairs he caught sight of Cahill and gasped, he pulled her into the house and then into the kitchen, and he ordered her to tell him what happened. She did and ended up spending the night crying in Hunters' arms, she later found out the girl was his girlfriend, and she found it weird that she had never met the girl before.  
  
The next day, against Hunter, she went back to her apartment and laid in their bed and just cried herself to sleep. She barely moved for the next couple of days but then she realized that if she didn't do something for money then she would be evicted. So she thought about some possibilities and realized that the best thing to do was just to sell the drugs that Rocky had around the apartment. After she found the drugs, she dressed in black leather pants and a baby blue tube top and Rockys' black leather coat and then put most of the drugs into her pockets', she knew who his customers were and she decided that it was time to pay them all a visit.  
  
As the weeks went by, Cahill got dragged further into the business and kept selling drugs to various people. Then one night she found a kid lying in an alley and when she looked at him she realized that he was passed out. She put an arm around his waist and pulled on of his arms and draped it over her shoulders and then started to drag him along, deciding to head back to her apartment. When she got there and unlocked the door she let the guy, no boy, fall onto the sofa and she went into the bedroom and changed into a pair of sweatpants and a t-shirt. When she walked back out she saw that the boy was awake and he seemed confused as to where he was.  
  
When he saw her, she saw the panicked look he got on his face and went into the kitchen to get him some aspirin and a glass of water. She handed him them and he drank greedily, while she sat down on the other chair. After he finished they both took a minute to study each other, she saw that he was about 5'7 or 5'8 and he had brown hair, with hazel eyes, and medium build. He was surprised to realize that she was probably taller then him by about three inches but after that he let his eyes roam over her and realized that she was also a couple years older then him and she had red hair, blue eyes, and a couple of scars on her face. He put two and two together and figured out just who she was, "You're Dagger.. Where the hell am I?"  
  
She smiled at his bluntness before answering, "My apartment. I saw you passed out, drunk as a skunk in one of the alleys, and I might not have the rep of being one of the nicest people, but I'm not going to let you get mugged or anything, kid. Why, you got somewhere to be?"  
  
He shrugged, "No, just wondering what I'm doing here, the last thing I remember is passing out."  
  
Cahill nodded, "So you got a name or should I keep calling you kid?"  
  
His eyes narrowed dangerously, "I ain't a kid, the name's Cole. You got a name or do I call you Dagger."  
  
"Sure I have a name, smart ass, it's Cahill." She raised an eyebrow before frowning, "You got a place to stay Cole?"  
  
"Nah," He shrugged nonchalantly and it was then that Cahill decided to let him stay with her, she liked the kid, he could be entertaining. From then on they became friends, of course, it took awhile for either of them to trust each other but they had a certain understanding. As Cahill laid in bed thinking about that she began to wonder if the kid was alright, he had quickly become someone that Cahill wanted to look after and if she had had a little brother she would have wanted it to be him. Finally around two in the morning Cahill fell into a deep dreamless sleep and that was what she needed, to be able to sleep without dreaming about all of the people from her past.  
  
She was woken up the next morning by a very cheerful Julie and she smiled, mischievously before pulling the pillow out from under her head and hitting Jules right in the face with it. Jules stuttered before letting out a giggle and grabbing the pillow off of her bed and hitting Cahill with it, and for the next ten minutes the two went at it, having a pillow fight. Then when Cahill collapsed on her bed laughing Jules threw her people right in Cahills' face and Cahill surprised, jumped up jokingly as if to go after Jules but Jules just ran out of the cabin, laughing. 'Alone at last,' She thought to herself and then grabbed some clothes and went in to take a quick shower and go through her morning ritual.  
  
When she came back out dressed and ready to conquer the world, she noticed Shelby sitting on the bunk next to hers looking at a picture frame. As Cahill got closer she realized it was the picture of her and Rocky and she grabbed it from Shelby, "Just what the hell do you think you're doing? This belongs to me, therefore you do not touch it!"  
  
Shelby stood up and pointed at the guy, "Who is that and what are you trying to pull?"  
  
Cahill placed the frame back where it was and frowned, "I'm not trying to pull anything and as to who that is well that is just none of your goddamn business, so go the hell away."  
  
Shelby stormed out of the cabin and Cahill gazed at the picture a minute longer before going out the same way and heading towards the dining hall. She went through the lunch line and didn't see anything really appetizing so she grabbed a bowl of fruit and a glass of juice and looked around at where everyone was eating. She saw Jules trying to catch her attention and smiled before making her way over to where Jules had obviously saved her a seat. She plopped down and took the time to really look at everyone around her. There's was Auggie who she deduced was dating Jules and then Daisy who seemed to be friends with Shelby and Ezra who was really cute in a weird sort of way. Of course there's Scott who she still couldn't really look at because of how he looked, so she kept her attention on her food.  
  
Jules smiled at her and she smiled back before taking a bite of her cantelope. "So what are you in for?"  
  
She stared at Shelby who had asked the question, "B and E you?"  
  
Shelby laughed and Cahill was somewhat surprised but then thought that maybe she just wasn't as bad as she had seemed. Auggie was the next to ask her question, "Where are you from?"  
  
"Detroit."  
  
Scott cocked his head at her, "Oh yeah, that's where Shelby's from are you sure you two don't know each other or something?"  
  
'Oh shit, please let her not remember me.' She looked up into Shelby's eyes and saw the respect there but also the humor at the situation, "I don't think I remember you, maybe we never met."  
  
"Maybe," Then Cahill took a quick swallow of her juice.  
  
Cahill felt relieved in an odd way, she didn't want to have to be Dagger here, but then again she wasn't really open to trusting these people. She thought briefly about calling Hunter but decided against it, he wouldn't understand anyway, he might be her best friend but he'd never been on the streets and he didn't even know why she chose to be on them. Only one person knew that and he was in jail right now and she didn't think she had the nerve to call to talk to him. She stood up deciding that it was time to talk to somebody and in no way was it any of these people. Cahill dumped her trash and then headed towards Peters' office, with one number in mind, hers; she wanted to talk to Cole. 


	4. Chapter Four

A.N. Thank you everyone who reviewed and I'm glad I'm getting more reviews from people who actually like my story and not just people who wanted to tell me how horrible my character was. ( Thanks  
  
As she neared Peter's office she looked around somewhat paranoid and then quickly knocked on the door, when no one answered she pushed it open and quickly walked in. She saw that Peter wasn't in and so she grabbed the phone and quickly dialed the number for her apartment. When it rang the third time she was getting worried, she checked her watch and knew that Cole would be in by now. Finally when the machine started to pick up, she heard it stopped and then Cole's voice on the other line. "Whoever this is better have a damn good reason for callin at eight in the morning."  
  
Cahill smiled, "Shut the hell up Cole, I need to ask you a favor."  
  
"Dagger? Where have you been?"  
  
"That is a long ass story and one I'd rather not get into right now, but I need you to go down to 24th and Benson tonight."  
  
"Okay, why?"  
  
"Because a couple days ago Tommy and some of the other Colts jumped me there and my dagger is in the gutter there. I need you to pick it up and bring it back to the apartment; you know what it means to me."  
  
"Shit Dagger, yeah I'll pick it up, but first you have to tell me where you are."  
  
"Alright, I'm at some fucked up camp for losers up in Canada."  
  
He laughed, "Good one, now what, are you at South Central or the hospital?"  
  
"Cole, I wasn't arrested and I'm not at the hospital, I was but I'm not now. I told you I'm at some camp for psychos, now please just go down and pick it up, don't go to any of the customers. If you're hard up just pawn the dagger!"  
  
"WHAT? I can't do that, are you insane?"  
  
"No I'm serious. I want you to go clean for a couple of weeks, at least till I get out of here."  
  
Cole was quiet for a few minutes and Cahill thought he'd hung up but then he sighed and starting talking in rapid Spanish, "Que fue injustica? Como malo estar tu herida?" (*** What went wrong? How bad were you hurt?***)  
  
"No tambien mucho, y Casey fue en lo. Ellos estar espera por mi." (***Not to much, and Casey was in on it. They were waiting for me.***)  
  
"Ellos conocer nuestro cliente?" (***They know our customers?***)  
  
"Ellos conocer nos. Ese es porque tu necesidad quedarse limpia por ahora." (***They know us. That's why you need to stay clean for now.***)  
  
"Bien, you voluntad recoger su daga esta noche." (***Okay, I'll pick up your dagger tonight.***)  
  
"Adios, Cole, yo voluntad llamada en cuanto yo lata." (***Bye Cole, I'll call you as soon as I can***)  
  
"Si pronto, esperar Daga tu nunca dijo donde tu estaban." (***Yeah soon, wait Dagger you never said where you were.***)  
  
"Yo no quiero decir derecho ahora." (***I don't want to say right now.***)  
  
"Bien, adios Daga."(***Okay, bye Dagger.***)  
  
"Bye Cole," When she heard the dial tone she hung up the phone slowly and turned around and gasped, seeing Peter standing in the doorway. "Hey Peter, uh how bout them Broncos?" Peter just gave her a hard look and she groaned and plopped down in the chair opposite Peter's and waited for him to walk around his side of the desk. When he did, she smiled and shrugged her shoulders, "Uh oops."  
  
"That's right oops, because you just earned yourself a week of kitchens." When Cahill groaned, Peter smiled, "And since you're here I might as well add another rule to that list I gave you yesterday, breaking into my office is a big no and you aren't allowed to use that phone."  
  
"Breaking in is such a bad term, you see I merely knocked and when I got no answer I opened the door and walked in and decided to wait for you and while I was waiting I thought I'd just call my friend and give him a heads up on where I am."  
  
"And what friend was that?"  
  
"The one I was living with, now can I go? I really am not in the mood for a lecture especially when you aren't my parent."  
  
Peter sat back and nodded, so Cahill stood and made her way to the door and practically ran out of the office before Peter could get in another word. On her way out of the main building she ran into Jules and she smiled at the perky girl, "Hey Cahill, what were you doing in there?"  
  
"Oh just having a friendly discussion with Peter, would you mind showing me around Jules? I got the basic gist of where everything is but I still don't really know my way around."  
  
Jules' smile widened, "Sure come on, I was just heading over to meet Auggie at the basketball courts anyway so I can show you mostly everything on the way over. Do you play basketball? I'm not really into sports but Shelby and sometimes Daisy play with the guys."  
  
Cahill shrugged, not really wanting to look like she was interested but she was because she used to love playing sports when she was younger and she always used to play with Cole and Rocky. They both loved to play basketball, so she just kinda got sucked in. "Sometimes, come on lets go." 


	5. Chapter Five

A.N. I'd just really like to thank everyone who reviewed and I'm glad that most of you don't care who Scott's with b/c at this moment I don't know who he'll be with. So please just keep reading.  
  
Cahill spent the rest of the day just hanging out with Jules; she wasn't really in the mood to play basketball so she passed on the offer. Her and Jules sat off to the side and just talked about a lot of things but the basic stuff, like their favorite movie or actor. And Jules filled her in on all the latest gossip including Shelby and Scott's breakup, "So Barbie and Ken really aren't the perfect couple then huh?"  
  
Jules laughed before answering, "I think this is just one of the off again phases of their relationship but who knows." Then she looked up and studied Auggie and sighed, "God he is so cute."  
  
Following her gaze, Cahill nodded, "Yeah I guess he is." Then her thoughts drifted back to Rocky and she was silent for awhile, "You know what Jules, I gotta go, I've got something that I have to do."  
  
She jumped up before Jules could ask what she had to do and jogged back to the cabin, she pushed the door open and opened the top drawer to her dresser and pulled out the paper that she had stuffed in there. Then she grabbed a pen and hard book to write on and laid down on her bed and started to write the letter she'd been putting off for months. She didn't know how to start it though, she looked up and grabbed the picture that was on her dresser and pulled it down to lay it on the bed next to her.  
  
Rock,  
  
This is it, the last time I'm writing you. I just thought that if you did ever decide to mail me a letter again then you'd like to know that my address has changed. I need to know that you're okay and I just need to know where we stand because I haven't heard from you in months and it's starting to worry me. No, I'm past being worried, right now I need to know that your still there so write back at least once. The address is on the back of the envelope.  
  
Dag  
  
She folded the letter up and then put the picture back on her dresser and left the rest of the paper strewn around on her bed, not in the mood to clean it up. She walked out the door, the letter clutched in her hand and walked towards Peter's office, hoping that he was still in there. Along the way she began talking to herself, "Okay this is the right thing to do, I mean there's nothing else to do. I have to know that he's okay, but what if he isn't?" She turned around on her heel and started walking back to the cabin, and started the debate in her head. 'I don't think I'm ready to know whether or not he still loves me. COWARD just turn around and go back to Peter's office.'  
  
Once again she turned around quickly and slammed right into someone, she stumbled back a step and then caught her balance and glared at the boy standing before her but then she saw his face and her defense crumpled. She walked around him and started towards Peter's office, but he grabbed her arm, "Hey are you okay?"  
  
She pulled her arm from his grasp, "I'm fine jock boy not go away." She headed off then ignoring the curious gaze that followed her, she just couldn't stand to be around him, it gave her the creeps to be around him because he looked like Rocky. As she got to the main building she knocked on Peter's door and when she heard his voice say come in she pushed the door open.  
  
Peter smiled at her, "What are you doing back here so soon?"  
  
Cahill shifted her weight from one foot to the other before deciding to just get this over with, "Can I have an envelope and stamp, I have something really important that I need to mail out."  
  
Studying her Peter took out the envelope and stamp and handed them to her, "Here you go, you can give it back to me because I usually am the one who send out all of the mail anyway."  
  
Cahill was hesitant to do that but then decided that it didn't matter one way or the other right now and she quickly sealed the envelope shut and wrote the return address and then the address where she was sending it and handed it to Peter. She left before he could even look at it and when he did glance down he was mildly shocked that it was going to be sent to the Illinois state prison but then he figured that being that she was here, she would probably know a lot of people who were in jail.  
  
He took out her file and started to study it, it stated that she'd been arrested several times but mostly for minor things and nothing major stuck out. Also it said that she'd run away several times and had now been living on the streets for a solid four years before ending up at the hospital badly beaten, where her step-father had found her and then sent her to come up here. He knew that there were a lot of things that were left unsaid but that was usually how it went with these kids. He sighed and threw the folder down on the desk and then grabbed a stack of mail and headed for the mailbox that was just at the edge of the campus. 


	6. Chapter Six

A.N. This is just a quick thanks to everyone who reviewed, they are always appreciated and loved. ( Kat  
  
Over the next couple of weeks Cahill fell into a certain routine, in the morning she woke up early, changed into a pair of baggy sweats and a t- shirt and went for a jog. Then she showered and dressed for the day and waited for Jules to get ready; together they went down to breakfast. After eating they'd go to their classes and then Cahill would do the work given to them and then head over to a clearing she'd found one day. Sometimes she would just sit there and reminisce and others she'd work on her fighting technique or just work out. Then that night she'd eat dinner with Jules and go to group, most of the time she'd stay silent, only speaking when spoken to. There were times when she'd offer her opinion on certain things or question something another said, but they were few and far between.  
  
Peter couldn't figure out how to get through because he'd tried all sorts of things but each time he'd think he made progress he'd end up ramming into another wall. All of the kids there had had weaknesses or rather triggers that showed him what they were about but for some reason he couldn't find hers. What he did know was the little bit of information she was willing to tell him, which was mostly just some little tidbits of her life on the street. He knew that she'd never been a prostitute, she lived in an apartment with a boy a couple of years younger then her, but she had yet to say his name, and that her best friend wasn't a street kid but he had a nice house.  
  
Then almost three weeks after she got there they were all in group and the topic of the streets came up. Cahill seemed to become more interested in what they were talking about and changed her position in the chair she using. Usually she sat in the single chair with one leg thrown over the arm, but the minute they started to talk about this she casually lowered her leg to the ground and leaned forward. Peter noticed but decided that it had more to do with the fact that a good part of her life was spent there then anything else. Then Auggie and Shelby started to talk about one thing Cahill could do without. Auggie brought it up and Cahill seemed to shrink into herself, "One of the major players in the drug area where I'm from was a girl so it just goes to show you that not every one of the dealers was male."  
  
"Same here, but I always wondered how she got the power," Shelby glanced at Cahill, "What about you newbie? Know anything about living on the streets?"  
  
Cahill tried to remain calm, "A little."  
  
Auggie raised an eyebrow, "Really? I wouldn't have thought of you as being a street kid. So how do you think the girl got the power?"  
  
When Cahill shrugged, Shelby jumped in, "I think she was cold, through and through. I've heard stories about the girl from my area. She was with the leader of this one gang and then when he was arrested she took over his clients."  
  
Jules looked at her confused, "Clients?"  
  
Auggie patted her hand, "She means the people the guy was selling drugs to."  
  
Cahill shifted in her seat and Peter watched for the first time as part of her shell cracked, "You don't know what you're talking about."  
  
They all looked over at her quiet, but firm statement and Peter could feel the underlying tone of danger in her voice, but Shelby didn't quite catch it and smirked. "What does princess Jr. think she know so much about a girl just because she's from the same city as her?"  
  
Cahill eye's glazed over and she immediately straightened her shoulders, which was Dagger showing through, she never let anyone talk to her that way and she wasn't about to start now. "Look BARBIE," She stressed the word and her smile grew as she saw a flash of anger in Shelby's eyes. "You're the one who thinks they know the story of this girl, who you've never met, just heard of. So really you're just who you called me."  
  
Shelby leaned back a smug look on her face, "And just what do you know about her that I don't?"  
  
"Well her name for one, it's Dagger. Do you know why they call her Dagger?" When Shelby shook her head, a glint came to Cahill's eyes. "Because she always carried one with her, knows how to fight to. All the fights she's been in the other person came out badly. Cut up and the likes, there's even one story that says that she attacked one of the cops that arrested her boy and slit his throat like butter."  
  
Jules gulped and paled so much that Cahill thought she was going to be sick and Daisy smiled, "Well now there's a girl with taste, no stabbing or anything messy like that. Just one quick slice and it was all over with."  
  
Ezra looked at Daisy like she was crazy, "Got that makes me wanna yack."  
  
Cahill just smiled and sat back in her seat and threw her leg back over the edge of the chair, signaling that she was done talking. Peter looked her over and realized that she could very possibly be good friends with this girl and he wondered what had gone on between the two. He knew from Shelby's hateful expression that it was time to call group to an end. As everyone began to leave, he pulled Cahill to the side and handed her a letter that had just gotten there that day.  
  
She looked at it and then her heart began to race, she thanked Peter and wandered out of the main building and then decided that she didn't feel like going back to the cabin so she made her way to her clearing and then settled down on a boulder and looked the letter over. There was enough sun left so that if she opened it then she would be able to read it. Quickly she tore the letter out of the envelope and opened it but became slightly confused when she didn't recognize the handwriting as Rocky's. She looked the letter over and then crumpled it up and threw it to the ground, she stood up and screamed at the top of her lungs and then jumped down from the boulder and took off into the forest at top speed.  
  
She didn't follow any specific path and didn't bother trying to figure out where she was heading, she just needed to get away. It was getting dark quickly and she started to shiver, she wrapped her arms around herself and just sat down and began rocking back and forth over and over. She wanted to cry, she really did but the tears wouldn't come to her, they just wouldn't come after all the years of being repressed. 'I'm alone, truly alone.' 


	7. Chapter Seven

A.N. I'm getting a lot of reviews with people liking Cole so I will have him more in the story, but probably not for two more chapters, then he'll be in it a lot but right now I'm trying just get into the flow of writing this story.  
  
Cahill woke up around seven and could barely move she was so cold; she tried to stand, but stumbled instead because she couldn't feel her feet. She cursed her stupidity of staying outside the whole night but knew she wouldn't have been able to handle going back to the camp after she got that letter. Now though she had no idea where she was and she was freezing her ass off and she was hungry. 'Damn it Cay, what were you thinking last night?'  
  
She figured that Peter probably thought she'd run away which was a logical thing considering her background, but she hadn't run she just needed a place to calm down and she honestly hadn't meant to fall asleep there but that was over with now she had to figure out how to get back. She decided that if she kept walking towards her left she'd have to end up somewhere, whether it be back at camp or the highway or a river or something, it had to lead somewhere. So she kept walking in a straight line and checking out her surroundings trying to figure out how far from camp she'd gotten.  
  
After an hour she gave up with a sigh and slumped down to the ground and stayed there, just lost in her thoughts, thinking about what the letter had said. It had been from his cellmate, who had written figuring that she'd want a response, Rocky had been there about a month when one of the head guys there had attacked him and Rock, trying to defend himself fought back and accidentally stabbed the guy with the knife the guy had meant to kill him with. Well then he was jumped by five of the guys friends and killed, Rocky was dead. 'No wonder he stopped writing and calling because he couldn't pick up a pencil being buried six feet down and all.'  
  
That's when she heard someone calling her name, she looked up and called back hoping that it was Peter, of course she didn't have that kind of luck. Blonde boy came walking through the bushes a few moments later, "Oh great," She mumbled to herself and stood up wiping the back of her pants.  
  
"Why'd you run?"  
  
It was a simple question and an innocent one but it got her blood boiling and her temper rising, she glared at him and slowly stepped forward. "What the HELL makes you think I ran? Huh? Did it ever occur to you that maybe I got lost? No of course not, it's just easier to believe that I ran, I don't run from my problems Ken, so just show me the way back to the stupid school and don't talk to me."  
  
Scott was defiantly shocked by the way he was treating him and he was not the type of person to just take someone's commands and he wasn't going to let her treat him this way. "I don't think so; you can find it by yourself, Princess. Maybe the walking will melt a layer of that ice you have going there." He turned to walk away, he figured she'd follow him but when he looked over his shoulder she'd started walking in the opposite direction. He shook his head at her stubbornness and walked back to her, "Why do you hate me? We've barely ever said hi to each other and you treat me like the plague."  
  
Cahill looked at him out of the corner of her eye, and then she sighed not wanting to share but figuring that if she told him a little of her past then he would leave her alone, "You remind me of someone from the streets."  
  
Scott was upset because he thought that the guy had done something to seriously injure her, "Did he give you those scars on your face?"  
  
She jerked her head towards him and raised an eyebrow, "Please the boy would have been flat on his back by the time he thought up the idea of raising his fist at me." Then she sighed again, "He was special to me and then he was arrested." She wasn't going to tell him what she just found out because that hadn't been the reason in the beginning of why she treated him the way she did.  
  
Frowning Scott looked her over, "You aren't telling me something."  
  
She growled, "And what, do I know everything of your past, preppy?"  
  
He winced, and then smirked realizing that she was trying to get to him, "Nope, but if you would talk to me then maybe I'd tell you stuff about me. I bet you don't even know my first name."  
  
She smiled her first genuine smile since being there, "Sure I do it's Ken and your last name is Doll. You were dating Barbie but then she found out about your affair with Skipper." Scott laughed and then continued walking back towards camp enjoying the silence. 


	8. Chapter Eight

A.N. Okay here's the next chapter, thanks to everyone who reviewed.  
  
As Scott and Cahill stepped out the trees, Cahill was practically tackled to the ground by Jules. "Oh my God, are you okay? I was sure something bad had happened because I knew you wouldn't run!"  
  
As Jules pulled back, Cahill smiled at her, "You were right, I got lost in the woods, but I didn't run."  
  
Peter came up behind her, "Where'd you find her Scott?"  
  
"Out by the bluff," He shrugged and then headed off in the direction of the basketball court, challenging Auggie to a game.  
  
"Oh, you're on meat." Auggie glanced at Cahill before leaving, "I'm glad you're okay."  
  
Cahill nodded and then turned to Peter, "So am I going to be punished or what?"  
  
Peter shook his head, "No, because I know you didn't try to run." He raised an eyebrow, "I'd still like to talk to you about whatever was in that letter." Cahill crossed her arms stubbornly, but he wasn't going to let her off the hook that easily, "Oh and you got a phone call."  
  
Immediately her face lit up, "Who from?" Shrugging, Peter turned away, Cahill groaned, "Okay it was from my ex-boyfriends cell mate."  
  
Peter frowned but motioned for her to follow him away from any curious ears; he led her up to his office and shut the door behind them. As she sat down, he moved around to his side of the desk and sat down, studying her intently. "What did it say?"  
  
She leaned forward and propped her elbows up placing her chin in them, "Is this your way of blackmailing me into telling you everything about my life? I mean, withholding information so I'll tell you what you want to know."  
  
He shook his head, "No and I didn't mean for it to sound that way, but this is the only way I can seem to get anything out of you and if this is the way it has to be then this is the way it has to be."  
  
Cahill leaned back and let the comfortable façade of peacefulness fall over her face, "He wanted to let me know that Rock, my ex, was dead, so there was no point in me writing there anymore."  
  
Peter could sense that there was more brewing beneath her calm surface, but he didn't want to push her anymore then he already had. "Alright, it was a boy; he said his name was Cole. You can use the phone here to return the call, would you like me to leave the room?"  
  
Cahill's eyes glinted with amusement, "That won't be necessary." She picked up the phone and quickly called her home number. When she heard his voice through the phone she leaned back, and got into a comfortable position.  
  
"Hello?" Much hadn't been said, but it was enough for Cahill to know that something was bothering him. She kept her face masked though, knowing that she didn't want to give away any of her thoughts to Peter.  
  
"Hola Cole." (Hey Cole.)  
  
"Dagger? Lo es asi bueno hasta aiga desde tu." She could hear the surprise in his voice but also the worry and she couldn't stand to worry him. She glanced at Peter, but saw he was either pretending to be engrossed in a paper on his desk or he really was. (Dagger? It's so good to here from you!"  
  
"Alegra tu todavia cuidado nosotros tenemos guarder este en espanol nossotros tenemos un publico." (Glad you still care, we have to keep this in Spanish, we have an audience.)  
  
"Quien estas bien, devecha?" (Who, you're okay, right?)  
  
Something was off and his keeping quiet about it was really pissing her off, "Si, ahora tu major decir yo como tu tener esto numero y que los infierno es acontecimiento ese tu habia hasta llamada aqui." (Yes, now you better tell me how you have this number and what the hell is happening that you had to call here.)  
  
He was caught off guard by the steel in her tone because she never talked to him like that, but he knew what he had to tell her just couldn't be said over the phone. Now his only problem was making her understand that, "Dagger, Hacer no consiga enojado pero yo lata no contra tu." (Dagger, don't get mad, but I can't tell you.)  
  
Her voice, was kept carefully controlled due to Peter being in the room, but Cole knew that if he wasn't careful he'd be in deep trouble. "Que hacer tu malo tu lata no mi?" (What do you mean you can't tell me?"  
  
Cole chose his words carefully, hoping she'd understand and leave it alone until he could see her in person. "Yo conocer donde estas, asi yo voluntad tiron arriba y nosotros lata charla pues sino que yo tener decir lata no estar dijo en el telefono." (I know where you are, so I'll hitch up and we can talk then, but what I have to say can't be said on the phone.)  
  
Before Cahill could get in a word edgewise, Cole hung up the phone, leaving Cahill so frustrated that she wanted to throw the phone against the wall, but she was still aware of Peter's presence in the room so she carefully replaced the receiver. "Thanks for letting me use your phone Peter."  
  
She stood up and was just about to leave when he answered her, "No problema! Parecer gustar un importante llamo. Yo voluntad ver tu a agrupar mas adelante." (No problem! Seemed like an important call, I'll see you at group tonight.)  
  
Cahill looked at him, but he was still reading through the stack of papers on his desk, so she just turned on her heel and walked back out of the room. She walked back to her cabin and flopped down on her bed, then she clicked on her stereo and put her headphones on, determined to get some sleep before group, but her thoughts drifted back to Rocky and finally the tears fell, finally she was able to let herself show weakness. 


	9. Chapter Nine

Cahill was barely able to contain her nervousness, as each new day came she became more and more antsy. Peter wasn't the only one who noticed this time either, but they all let it go thinking that it had something to do with the letter she'd gotten. Of course that wasn't it at all, but she wasn't about to correct them. She knew she wasn't supposed to have visitors unless they were family but her and Cole would just lie and say that he was her step-brother or something like that. Plus Peter couldn't exactly call up her parents and ask considering they didn't want to talk to him about anything concerning her.  
  
Every day she spent most of her time staring at the road that led up to camp but the days came and went and there was no sign of Cole. Finally two weeks after the call, she saw an old Ford coming up the road and she casually made her way over. Cole stepped out and handed something to the driver then nodded his thanks and slammed the door shut. She went running towards him and she threw her arms around her neck, "RAY! It's so great to see you." She knew that he would realize what she was doing and play along then she felt his hand slip into her sweatshirt pocket and knew he'd placed her dagger there. "How are you?"  
  
He pulled back and smiled, realizing what her game was, "I've been doing pretty good, but I was worried about you so I thought I'd come up for a visit."  
  
Peter came striding up and looked at the way we were talking to each other and he figured that Cole was my step-brother Ray. As he got closer Cole straightened his shoulders and raised his chin just an inch, making Cahill laugh, Cole always had the ability to make her smile. "Peter, I'd like you to meet my brother, Ray, Ray this is the director here, Peter."  
  
Cole extended his hand, "Pleasure to meet the man who's helping my sister get better."  
  
Peter looked between them, "You're step-siblings aren't you?"  
  
Cahill nodded and threw her arm around Cole's shoulders, "Yeah, but we're more like blood then anything else."  
  
Still somewhat shocked after the letter he read when Cahill first came he walked off towards his office, shaking his head. As soon as he was out of hearing range, Cahill burst into a round of giggles and hit Cole lightly on the arm, "What was with the snob routine?"  
  
Cole smirked, "Well I did meet your stepbrother once I remember what he was like."  
  
Then she sobered looking at his sad appearance, "Come with me." She pulled him towards her cabin ignoring the feeling that someone was staring at her and just kept pulling him behind her.  
  
As she shoved the door open, she looked around and was relieved that nobody was there then she let go of Cole's arm. He rubbed it, "Ow for a minute there I forgot who you actually are." Cahill gave him a 'you better start talking look' then sat down on the bed. He sat next to her before starting, "It all started a little after you left. I kept going with the routine because I didn't know what was wrong, and I ran into Tommy and he was not to pleased with you or me for that matter."  
  
Cahill growled and pushed her hair out of her face, "What'd he do?"  
  
Cole lifted up his shirt just to show his stomach, which was covered with a bandage. Cahill opened her top drawer and pulled out some ointment and some bandages. Carefully she pulled the old bandage off and nearly lost it at the sight of the knife wound or rather wounds that were beneath it. They were crudely carved into the sign of the Colts, quickly she washed it then covered it with the ointment then rebandaged it. "Keep going."  
  
He pulled his shirt back down, "He told me that he was looking for you and if I knew where you were and I hadn't told him then he'd find some way to make me pay. Of course, at the time I didn't know where you were so I wasn't lying but then you called a couple of days later and I was surprised that you weren't in one of the hospitals or even locked away in that house. When you hung up I used *69 and wrote the number down then the next day I called and when Peter answered he said that it was Mount Horizon."  
  
Cahill had been patient through all this but it seemed like that wasn't the end of it so she urged him to keep going, "You know that Rock's dead don't you?" It was said more as a fact than a question so Cahill just nodded, "But you probably don't know that Tommy's responsible for that, he sent someone when he found out that Rock was being transferred."  
  
Her fists clenched automatically at her sides, then she let out an air of breath, "Keep going."  
  
"Well I had to tell them-"  
  
She held up her hand, "Wait a minute, wait one GOD DAMN MINUTE! You told the dragons?"  
  
The last part had been yelled and she was right in his face so he knew that if he didn't want to get a broken nose then he would have to answer her completely. "Uh.I had to because I needed protection and I knew that once they knew that I was friends with you then they would help me. It's dangerous being on the streets and now I didn't have your back-up."  
  
Cahill pulled back and nodded and put her head in her hands, "I'm sorry Cole, I'm so sorry."  
  
"Yeah well your not going to be sorry after this, there's going to be a war."  
  
She perked up, "What?"  
  
"The gangs are gunning for each other, you can't walk within five blocks of rival territory without getting the crap kicked out of you. Trust me I know," He rubbed his shoulder subconsciously and she viscously pulled the top of his shirt away from it.  
  
Beneath it was a huge bruise, "Who did it?"  
  
He heard the steel in her voice, "It was Percy."  
  
She stood up and slammed her fist into the wall, "I need to be there! People are getting hurt, you're getting hurt and yet where am I? At some stupid get better soon camp! I should be helping the dragons not stuck here in this little bubble of a town. I'm not doing anything here!"  
  
Then she pulled out the dagger and handed it back to him, "I need you to do something and it's something important so don't screw up." He nodded and she knew without saying that he wouldn't mess it up but her anger was getting the best of her. "Go back and go to the old Shack."  
  
"But that's Colt territory!"  
  
"I know that damnit!" She snapped and immediately regretted it at the withdrawn look in his eye, "Look I didn't mean it like that, but go there and leave the dagger with this note."  
  
She quickly jotted a few things down on a piece of paper and handed them to him, "What's it going to do?"  
  
"Bring the fight where it should be, to me." Then she kissed him on the forehead, "Keep that on you at all times here, I don't want anyone getting nosey." She walked out and he quickly stuffed them in his sweat shirt and followed her. 


	10. Chapter Ten

They spent the next few hours catching up on the good things that had been going on, and inwardly debating just how smart this idea of hers was. She'd never admit, even to herself but this scared her; the war, the fact that they'd gotten to Cole. Everything that he'd just told her really scared her and she honestly didn't know if she was doing the right thing and that scared her more than anything. How could Dagger not know what she was doing? How? It wasn't like she got up every morning planning her day out, but she usually had a pretty good idea of exactly what she was doing. She never went into something without thinking it through, but this was one thing that she had done just that. Not that she'd ever back down, but everything running through her head made her seriously think twice about what she'd written.  
  
Being on the hit list of every gang in town except for the dragons was something she'd grown to live with, but having her friends added simply because they might or might not know where she is really pissed her off. It took her to another level of anger, one she'd never experienced except for one other time in her life and that'd been when she'd killed the cop that had hurt Rock. Even then she hadn't been fully justified but she felt as if she was now and there was no turning back. And even if she could turn back the hands of time, she wouldn't. She'd lived her life the way she'd wanted to, no matter how many regrets she had over the course of her life, at the moment when she'd done those things she'd been justified and that was what mattered.  
  
Now thinking back on all the years she'd spent running from her family, and other dangers that surrounded her she realized how she could have done things differently. One thing she'd never change was leaving home though, that was one thing she knew had been right, even now. But how she'd made sure Cole was taken care of, she should have done that differently. He'd been so innocent to the world when they'd met, he'd had tragedy, sure, but he hadn't been on the normal street-wise kid. At least not the type he was now, she'd done that and she regretted it. That was one thing in her life that she should have taken responsibly but she hadn't, she'd reacted in the normal Dagger way and maybe she should have just been Cahill.  
  
Eventually Cole brought out the best in her but not before he'd known horror, and drugs, and everything else that came with living with the one and only Dagger. She hadn't meant for him to become the person he was right now and she never meant for him to see the things he'd seen. Selling drugs had been her thing, but she'd turned it into his thing too. She should have been protecting him, not exposing him. Now he was here and with a new mark that would be permanent. How could she have done this to him? It was her fault the Colts had come after him, but now. now they would pay and she would make sure to save something special for Tommy. He would be the first to go. and with that thought she dismissed the rest of it from her mind. She'd have a few weeks maybe even a month and a half before she could do anything and that would be plenty of time to plan. Right now she was going to show her appreciation to the one boy she still loved in her life. 


	11. Chapter Eleven

A.N. Just to let everyone know I didn't start this story with the purpose of going against the rules of being a Mary Sue, I also didn't start it to be a Mary Sue. I doubt that you would be likely to find many other stories out there for Higher Ground that are quite like this one and again I have yet to decide if I even want Cahill to be with Scott. If she is then that won't be decided for awhile and if she isn't then who cares? Anyway to everyone else who reviewed, thanks I really appreciate it and I'm sorry it's taken so long to update, but with school and other things it's hard to get new chapters up.  
  
She knew they were all curious as to Cole was, but she wasn't willing to give them any information even if they did have the nerve to ask her. The look on her face probably turned most of them away and the protective way she acted towards Cole turned the rest away. They didn't need to know and they wouldn't until the time was right and right now it wasn't time for them to know. She took Cole down to the docks where she knew they could talk and not worry about being heard because they'd hear someone coming. She didn't want to talk about the Colts or the Dragons or the gang war that was looming above their heads. She wanted to know how he was and he'd been on any dates since she'd come here.  
  
In her head she knew he'd never tell her even if he had gone on dates, they had this relationship that was friendship but they didn't always share stuff like that. Sometimes it was just too weird, because they were so close yet not that close at all. It was a difficult relationship to understand, let alone explain. She swung her legs idly over the edge, not expecting the push that came and the fall that followed. As she swam up for air she glared playfully at the culprit. He put on his best innocent face but he knew she'd never buy it, so he extended his hand to help her out. Years of training had taught her how to keep her thoughts to herself even her playful ones so she kept her glare on and took his hand.  
  
Smiling sardonically at Cole she pulled him in and laughed at his surprised expression, but when he didn't come up she became worried. What if he hit his head? What if he can't swim? She'd never even bothered to ask him that, she just assumed he knew how to swim. 'Oh no.' She dove under the water her eyes searching for him, for a brief sighting of his brown hair. Suddenly her leg was captured and she was pulled further under the water, she smacked Cole and kicked her legs to get back to the surface. Angrily, she swam back to the docks and pulled herself out, "Don't you ever do that again, how stupid can you be? I thought you hit your head, or didn't even know how to swim. But no. you decided to play your little games, your so THICK!"  
  
She stormed off, back towards the girls' cabin not bothering to look and see if he was following, at this point she didn't care. She hoped he would know better now than to follow her when she was this angry, sometimes she couldn't control her reactions. Looking out of the corner of her she saw Shelby standing with Daisy and both were laughing at her. She turned on her heel and gave them her infamous glare and they both stopped suddenly. "Mind your own damn business," It was said very quietly but there was no question as to the anger in her tone.  
  
Then she continued on her way, not interested in their reactions to her words. Quickly she pulled out a pair of clothes to change into and went to the bathroom locking the door. Just as quickly she changed into some dry clothes and threw the wet ones over the tub to dry. A lot calmer now she walked back into the main room and found Cole sitting on her bed looking at the picture that she had of the two of them. He glanced over as she came in, with a look she saw how sorry he was and she knew that he meant it. So she made her way to sit next to him, she laid her head on his shoulder and looked the picture over. It wasn't taken to long ago, and it had been a day when they'd been by themselves so they were both smiling and not caring how they looked.  
  
It was a carefree picture and that was one thing she didn't have many of, "When'd you pick this up?"  
  
She smiled and took it from him to stand and place it back on the dresser, "A few days before I came here." Shrugging she started to pace and knew it was time to ask, "Do you think I'm wrong in what I'm doing?"  
  
"With bringing the war here?" She couldn't look at him but his tone said it all, "Yes, I don't think you're prepared for it and I don't think any of the people here should have to deal with it. But since when does Dagger care what other people think?" Cahill could almost hear the smirk in his voice and she looked up, following it with one of her own.  
  
"Since Dagger became a washed out, old leader." She sat down next to him again and wasn't surprised to feel the bed shift when he leaned forward to rub his hand over her back. He knew that this was one of those moments that would rarely happen and it was like he knew what she needed right at this moment. "Since Dagger came to Camp Happy."  
  
She snapped out of the sad mood just as quickly as she'd fallen into it, now wasn't the time to mope around. Now was the time for action and she was going to take action, whether or not it affected the people around her. She had other people counting on her back home and those were the ones who meant something. "How quickly can you get back home?"  
  
He looked up, shocked that she was still going through with it, "If I leave tomorrow, a week; two tops."  
  
Nodding, she moved out of the cabin, not noticing the person that had slipped around the side, "Good because when you get back you're making a stop at the Shack." She knew that he wasn't happy with this, but she also knew he'd do it or he'd face her wrath, and that wasn't something anyone should do. "Now, let's go eat, I'm hungry." With that they headed off in the direction of the cafeteria, not talking much; each lost in their own thoughts.  
  
Once there though she pulled him up into the line and laughed at the disgusted faces and noises he made when he saw the type of food he had to choose from. He looked at her from the corner of his eye and grinned, "You actually eat this crap?" She grinned and pointed to the only edible thing there, the salads; then she grabbed one and searched for an empty table.  
  
Like always though there was none and she was forced to lead Cole over to sit with the rest of her group. He took a seat across from her and next to Auggie, but Cole didn't even acknowledge that anyone was next to him. Cahill offered a smile towards Juliet then began to eat, and occasionally looking up at Cole. Shelby didn't seem to like the fact that both Cahill and Cole were ignoring the rest of the Cliffhangers, so she took it upon herself to introduce them all. "Since Miss Social over there doesn't seem to want to tell you who we are, I will." She smiled, flirtatiously, but Cole just gave her a cold stare so she dove into introductions, "That's Auggie, Daisy, Scott, David, Ezra, the Princess and I'm-"  
  
Cahill smirked before interrupting her, "And she's Miss Congeniality otherwise known as Barbie." Then Cahill took a bite of her salad and offered a wide grin towards Shelby, who looked ready to dive down the table at her. Cahill only raised an eyebrow as a silent challenge for her to do just that and to see what it got her. 


	12. Chapter Twelve

After dinner, Cahill pulled Cole down to one of the few places that would be secluded that this time of night because most of the kids were in group. She sat on the edge of the dock and didn't even look over as he sat next to her because she was once again turning serious. Now though she was much more confident in her decision because it wasn't going to go down the way everyone around her thought it might. Even Cole was misled if he thought her mind wasn't already forming an even better plan than the previous one. Gang fights were one thing that could never be predicted, people fought dirty and people switched sides faster that a switchblade could be snapped out; no one was to be trusted and that was one thing she'd learned the hard way. Her life was full of mistakes but this was one time when it just didn't matter if it was a mistake or not. Casually her legs swung back and forth below her and she tilted her head to look up at the sky, her eyes hardening. "It's time for you to go back, Cole."  
  
He sighed, but it was not a complaining sigh, more of a resolved one. "I know, Cay, I know." He was sad and she could tell that he was, he didn't want to go yet and she didn't know if she wanted him to leave but it was the right thing for both of them. If anyone had followed him or was trying to follow him things would move to quickly. Cahill turned to look at him and for a moment she wanted nothing more than to just tell him to never leave her but it wasn't the Dagger way, it wasn't her way. Cole looked over at her and smiled, but behind the smile was the sadness of what was to come and knowing that people they knew were going to die, were dying this very moment. Without thinking she leaned forward and kissed him, it was one of those things that she'd never thought would happen but it did and she planned to enjoy it for as long as she could.  
  
Slowly she raised her hand to the side of his face and just let it rest there. His lips were so soft and yet hard at the same time, they were unforgiving; that's what she'd been trying to think of, unforgiving. Innocence was not something to be found in either of them and this kiss held none of it. Pulling back, she took a deep breath and looked up into his eyes, but all he did was smile and kiss her again. Not a lingering one but it held as much power as the first had, then he stood and stuffed his hands into his pockets. "I'm gonna." Nodding his head toward the street, she realized he was going to start walking back to town. Hurriedly she stood and hugged him once, then let go and stared at him, silent. It wasn't that she didn't want to say anything, but at this moment nothing she could think of saying would come out right and so she silently watched him head back in the direction of the road and she sighed, tucking a piece of hair back off of her face.  
  
"Bye Cole." With a loud sigh, she sat back down on the dock and then laid backwards to stare up at the sky. So many things were happening and she didn't have control over them, not having control was not something she liked when it came to her life, not having control meant that you weren't the one who would know what was going on, and not having control meant that someone else was in control but just who has yet to be seen. IGod help us all if the control falls to the Colts./I  
  
Some time later a shadow fell over her and she looked over and found Shelby standing there, "What could you possibly want, Barbie?" Never one to like being caught with her guard down, she stood and turned to face Shelby. "Isn't it past your bed time?"  
  
"I don't know who you think you are, but if you put Scott in danger." She let the threat trail off and Cahill narrowed her eyes at Shelby and hardened just a bit more, putting on her own mask of rage and anger.  
  
"No, no Barbie bimbo you've got it all wrong." She let a low growl, filled with menace and advanced towards Shelby. "I don't know who the hell you think you are, but this..." Motions to herself and everything surrounding her, "Is my business and that means to keep your little nose out of it." Then she pushed past Shelby, hoping to hear a splash but Shelby must have caught her balance because she didn't hear a single thing except for complete and utter silence.  
  
Going back to the cabin was just not an option at the moment so instead she headed towards the basketball court. Unfortunately some boys from another group were there and so she stood and watched them for a bit her feelings kept carefully concealed, never giving away any of her thoughts. Just silent staring and a few narrowed glares when one of them turned their attention to her. Finally after an hour or so she turned and headed for the lodge, knowing it was time for group to start. Taking her place she waited for the others to show and they did, trickling in one by one. After Peter and Sophie arrived they called for group to start and everyone turned their attention to the two.  
  
Cahill tuned them out and stared at the ceiling instead, ignoring everyone around her. She didn't even hear them call her name the first few times but the tone to Peter's voice changed quickly and that snapped her out of her reverie. Glancing back, she raised an eyebrow towards him. "Yes?"  
  
He narrowed his eyes but then relaxed, "Glad to see that you could join us once again. I was just going to explain about the next group outing we were going to have and I thought it would be best if everyone was with us."  
  
'Outing.' They couldn't go on an outing, she had things to do and she had to figure out how to get back to the city. The letter was a good diversion and it would through the Colts for awhile but not nearly long enough if she didn't think up a plan quickly. All these things flew around in her head but her face was like stone. "And just where is this outing going to be, Mr. Scarbrow?" Her tone didn't hold curiosity but seemed very businesslike and she briefly thought that Ray would be proud of that tone. 'Mental shiver.'  
  
Glancing at her, Peter could tell that something was going on that she wasn't sharing but he didn't think that this was the time to push her into telling him and he was right. If he even thought of pushing her into telling him her wall would just be thrown up further and it'd be harder than ever to get through. "I have it all planned out and we'll be leaving tomorrow morning. I thought we should keep group short tonight so you could pack what you would need." After that she tuned him out once again and went into thinking about what the hell she was going to do. It was difficult enough trying to find a way just to get out of here without getting lost and now she was going to have to deal with this. This outing. Feeling mentally and physically drained was not her idea of a fun time but there wasn't much choice in this. Who knew, maybe something would present itself while she was away.  
  
A.N. I know, I know it's been awhile since I've updated this or any other story I'm writing but it's hard plus who would of thought senior year would be so hectic? Applying to colleges, visiting colleges, homework, tests, work, babysitting, and trying to have a social life plus keeping up with all my friends. It gets to be a bit much after awhile but I have missed writing this and I swear I will have another hopefully much longer chapter out sometime soon and by soon I mean two or three weeks not two or three months. Thanks for reviewing to everyone who did even if they hate my story. Just so you know this chapter doesn't mean that Cole and Cahill will definitely be a couple but there's the possibility. Keep reviewing! 


	13. Authors Note

A.N.  
  
Yes school is out and I'm planning on working on a new chapter for this and my pirates of the carribean story. I'm just trying to figure out where to go with them and then I'll have them out and hopefully that'll be soon. I'll say within the next week and hope I'm not lying. I'm sorry for dying off but I swear I'm back. 


	14. Chapter Thirteen

Back in Detroit  
  
"You're never going to find her, Tommy. If she doesn't want to be found then she won't be."  
  
Snarling, Tommy made a move to grab Casey by her ponytail but came up empty when she moved out of the way quickly. "Don't tell me what I can and can not do, Casey, I don't like hearing about my abilities from someone of your status."  
  
With a glare, Casey stood and huffed loudly, "My status? And what is that, darling? The only girl who will come within a mile of you without being surrounded by a protective layer of plastic? Huh, is that it? I think it is."  
  
Tommy yanked Casey by her arm and pushed her onto the sofa, "One more word from you and I'll cut out your tongue."  
  
Cowers at the threat and quiets immediately, knows he'll do just what he says he will and doesn't want to end up losing any body parts. Tries to placate him by running her hand over his arm, "But baby, there wouldn't be any appeal if you cut off my tongue."  
  
"That's the idea, sugar lips." Letting go of her arm, Tommy moved towards his desk to once again go over the things that were so ingrained in his mind. 'Must find Dagger, at any cost; she has to pay for what she's done to me. That little bitch can't run away and just leave this all behind her. No, it isn't going to happen. She'll pay, oh yes, she'll pay.'  
  
'Well we got no choice.. all the girls and boys.. making all the noise.. cause they found new toys..' Dagger nodded her head quietly along with the lyrics blaring in her ears as she laid back on her bed with her eyes closed. She was not looking forward to this trip. At first she had thought that this could have helped her plan but she realized that it couldn't. The only way her plan could go the way she wanted it to was if she would be able to get out of here but she knew that Peter would keep to close of an eye on all of them. 'School's out for summer....'  
  
Angrily, she flopped over onto her side and shut off the CD player, pulling her earphones off as well and breathing a deep breath. This wasn't how this was supposed to end. Rocky was supposed to be by her side, not some boy who had a slight infatuation with her persona. God.. how could she have been stupid enough to kiss him back. That wasn't the way that was supposed to go down but it was too late to take it back now. She berated herself inwardly for her stupidity over that.  
  
Without her noticing, the night gave way to day and she realized that she wouldn't be able to get any sleep at all before this little trip Peter had planned. And so with that in mind she stood and started walking around the cabin quietly to pack some of the things Peter had told her she'd need in the pack he'd given her after group the night before. Then she went to grab a shower before the others woke up. By the time she was finished and exited the bathroom, both Shelby and Daisy were up and chatting quietly on Shelby's bed; obviously they were both waiting for the shower.  
  
Cahill headed over towards her bunk and glanced at the picture of Rocky that still stood on the dresser next to her bunk. Without thinking she lifted her hand up and pulled the picture face down, not wanting to see or think about him right now. She needed to clear her head before she gave anymore thought to him and what she owed him. He had saved her when she first ended up on the streets and she wasn't going to let Tommy get away with his death.  
  
After about half an hour all the girls were ready to go and they trooped outside to find Peter, Sophie, and the boys standing about thirty feet away. Shelby's eyes lit up when they landed on Scott and she made her way over to stand next to him and began whispering to him. "Hey.. Scott?"  
  
Scott turned his head and gave her tired smile before rubbing his hair, "Yeah, Shel?"  
  
"I think I should tell you something." With a sigh she looked around, making sure that no one else was paying attention to them. Briefly her eyes focused on Cahill who stood at the edge of the group, staring off at the first lost in thought. As if feeling eyes on her, Cahill's head snapped toward Shelby and she frowned at them for a moment before turning her back and going back to her thoughts. "Do you remember how I told you about that girl from Detroit? The one who basically ran most of the drug rings in the area?"  
  
"Yeah, sure... the cold one, right?" Scott eyed Shelby, apprehensively, having seen the exchange between the two girls. "Shel, just come out and tell me."  
  
"I think.. No, I'm sure that that girl is Cahill."  
  
"What? That doesn't make any.. actually that makes a lot of sense." Scott lifted his eyes once more to look over at Cahill. "Are you absolutely sure though?"  
  
"Yeah, it was harder to recognize her off of the streets. She doesn't usually dress like that." Shelby motioned to the jeans and t-shirt that currently adorned Cahill's body. "And I never really saw her, just heard a description from this girl who used to work with me." At the look Scott gave her she quickly continued, "When I was waitressing, smart-ass. Anyway, it makes more sense now that I think about. Her getting all defensive when that topic about girls who run the drug ring came up."  
  
"Yeah, that does make a lot of sense." Nodding slightly, Scott was about to continue when Peter cut them off.  
  
"Alright group, gather around." He waited for them all to come closer and frowned a bit when Cahill still stayed a good five feet away from the others. It seemed that her brothers' visit had done nothing to help but more to harm her position here. He hadn't even seen her say anything to Juliet and that was surprising seeing as how those two had become fast friends since her arrival. "I've decided that this will be a buddy outing." Smiling slightly at the groans they were all admitting he continued, "I'll pair you off into groups and you'll follow the path marked on the map. You should reach the end point in exactly two days and you'll rest a day before coming back in a different set of groups. Please hand out the packets, Soph."  
  
Sophie obliged and picked up where he had left off, "You are to answer these questions together between the time you leave here and arrive at your destination. You'll be given a separate packet for the return journey."  
  
"Thanks." Peter glanced around, knowing they were all wondering what was up with the load of work he was giving them. Usually their hikes were simpler, but this was a point that had to be made with a certain less experienced member of their pack. "Sophie and I will check in on you once a day, but other than that you'll be left to yourselves. Alright here are you're groups." As Peter read off the names, everyone glanced around, wondering where he would place their newest newbie. "Ezra, Auggie, and Daisy are group one," Silently he passed their map over to them.  
  
He held out the second map to Shelby, "Shel, you're with Jules."  
  
Shelby looked over at Juliet, slightly disgusted, "Just the two of us? Are you trying to cause a cat fight Peter?"  
  
Peter simply smiled and pulled out the third and final map, "Of course, this leaves David, Scott, and Cahill."  
  
Scott stepped forward to grab the map but David got there first. "Oh joy, guess what Scottie? We get to break in the newbie."  
  
As Scott looked over at Cahill he could have sworn that it looked like she wanted to break in David's face but that emotion was gone after a moment and she just gave a slight shrug as she walked over to join them and look at the map. "Hope you boys are good at the forest bit, I'm a bit of a city girl."  
  
The tone of her voice was icy but her body seemed to radiate heat from David's last comment. "We'll get you there safe enough." Scott tried to sooth her but he should have guessed that both his tone and what he said would have set her off, he knew it would have set Shelby off and they were more alike than they'd ever admit. He quickly tried to take back what he'd said, "I mean.."  
  
It was too late though, the damage had been done, "I know exactly what you meant, -Scottie-. Lets see if you get there safe enough." With that she turned and gazed out at the woods, angry with herself for having shown her anger.  
  
Peter, having seen the whole exchange gave a bit of a smile to Sophie. This wasn't the exact reaction he had been wanting from her but it was better than the nothing he'd been getting. He was hoping that not only the questions but the time out with both Scott and David would set her off in some way or another. Get her to let at least one wall crumble. He knew that at least David would her temper like no one else and he thought that Scotts obvious need to sooth her would set her off as well. She wasn't the type who liked to be coddled. He'd find out soon enough though, "Alright, gang let's go."  
  
He watched the three groups set off towards different parts of the forest, hoping that this would achieve what he wanted it to. He needed to get through to some part of Cahill. If this didn't help he didn't know what would. "I'll be back Sophie, I want to check on a few things before we get going. I'm sure they'll be alright for a few hours."  
  
Sophie glanced at Peter and gave a swift nod, "That's fine. I'm going to start packing the gear." With that, Peter trotted off towards the office to once again go over Cahill's file and see if anything at all would stick out this time. And then maybe he'd call in a few of his sources and see what they could come up with.  
  
A.N. Thank you for being so patient with this chapter and I'm hoping that the next one will be up very quickly. Mostly because I've gotten back into the swing of writing this story and I plan on putting most if not all of my effort into this one until I'm completely finished with it. And just to answer a few reviews, Cole and Cahill might have something but I don't think Cahill will take it very seriously because of their age difference. I did at one point say that Cole was several years younger than Cahill. That in her mind will make him far to naïve for her. And she isn't really over Rocky. But we'll see what happens there. 


End file.
